It’s early yet, but USA 1 in the Bermuda Bowl and New Zealand in the Venice Cup have started their quests for world championships with impressive performances in their first three round-robin matches.

USA1, the team captained by George Jacobs, started the day with a 54-15 rout of USA 2 (Nick Nickell and company), then followed with a 72-23 win over Ireland and a 65-23 triumph over Australia. Jacobs is playing in his first Bermuda Bowl.

The team left only 1 victory point unaccounted for out of a maximum of 75, 16 clear of second-place Norway. Poland is next with 57.

In the Venice Cup, New Zealand started with a 55-24 win over the strong French team, then clobbered Indonesia 65-15 and routed Croatia 56-9. With 72 victory points, they are 11 clear of second-place USA 2. Germany and the Netherlands are next with 57 VPs each.

It is closer in the Senior Bowl as Italy and Australia are tied at the top with 63 VPs each, followed by Poland with 57 and USA 1 and Argentina, tied with 54.